How to install a bootable SSD on a PowerEdge 740?

Hello,

you need to verify what kind of Raid controller (Software or Hardware) is installed if its "active". Check the BIOS for this one.

When ever you deal with a RAID Controller  you need to create a VD(virtual disk) on a Raidgroup(Diskset) and the OS will see the VD and can work with it. 

What exactly you mean with "clone"?  If its comming from a non Dell(Perc) system than your Raid Controller cant work with it. If you clone a exising Dell setup you need to import the "foreign" config within the controller. The Controller will read the existing information from the disks.

For it sounds you have clone a single disk from a desktop or so?

Regards,
Joerg

Dear Joerg,

thank you very much for your fast reply!

I have an hardware raid controller PERC H730P (in slot 6). If I understand correctly from the BIOS and the documentation, creating a virtual disk will cause the loss of data in the physical disk associated with the virtual disk. My point is that with "clone" I mean a SSD disk copied (at low level, sector by sector, by using dd in Linux) from a disk in a server equivalent (a PowerEdge 740 with the same configuration) to the one in which I would like to install the "cloned" disk (the "cloned" disk contains OS and data and is, of course, bootable). Do you mean that there is a special procedure to clone the disk from a dell(Perc)-based system?

Actually, I don't need any raid controller, can I avoid completelly the RAID and just use standard SATA AHCI instead? I checked that the "cloned" disk works in a standard desktop computer in which hardware RAID controller isn't present. I already tried to disable the RAID controller on the poweredge (switching off the slot from the BIOS), but still the boot from the SSD disk this doesn't work...

Thank you very much for your kindness and your time.

Gianluca

If you clone it with "sector by sector" than check within the PERC menu if a "foreign" configuration is detected. If so you need to import these.

This "foreign" is the way how to replace a broken PERC within a system or when moving disks to another system. The PERC needs to import the Raidsetup by reading it back from the disks.

Yes, when creating a new VD it will erease the existing data on the disk

Regards,
Joerg

Dear Joerg,

I went deeply in the bios setup tool and I'm not able to find any PERC menu with the possibility to load "foreign" configuration. Essentially, I found only the way to configure new virtual disks. Do you have any suggestion?

I tried also to install in the PowerEdge a different bootable (with Centos OS) SSD disk dismounted from a standard desktop PC (so, this disk is not cloned from a computer with a raid controller inside). Also in this case, I'm not able to see this disk in the bootable media in the PowerEdge server. I think that I'm missing some basic information: is it mandatory to use the raid controller to boot from SSD and HDD? Can I avoid to use it, in case of a single disk for which I don't want to have neither RAID0 nor other RAID configuration?

thanks

g.

Hello, we need the RAID controller information connected to that existing SSD.

VD means that the SSD has already been transformed as a virtual disk by the RAID controller.

Its possible that you need to set the bios to UEFI boot mode or BIOS boot mode. 

#Iwork4Dell

@DELL-Young E​ 

Dear DELL-Young E, thanks for your reply.

The controller is PERC H730P Adapter (physically placed in slot 6 of the PCI), the package versione is 25.5.5.0005 and the firmware version is 4.290.00-8334, the controller mode is RAID, the product revision level is 2.25. The BIOS version is 1.6.11 and the UEFI compliant version is 2.5 . This is what I can learn navigating in the bios menu. Is there a different way to access RAID controller configuration?

Thanks

g.

@DELL-Rey G​ 
Thanks for your answer.
I tried already to boot in legacy bios mode, but nothing changes. In any case, I think that the SSD disk I want to use is UEFI compatible, since in a standard desktop PC (without raid controller) and UEFI enable, it boots without problems.

g.

Hello if you are transferring from the system A to B, you must have the same controller and it’s safe that you move both controller as well as the disk.

You can use iDrac or HII to access RAID.

Entering the HII configuration utility

Perform the following steps to boot to the HII configuration utility:

1. Turn on the system.
2. While the system startup, press <F2> to enter System Setup.
3. Click Device Settings.

Device Settings screen lists all the RAID controllers in the system.

To access the management menu for the controller, use the arrow keys or the mouse.

@DELL-Young E​ 

It's impossible to move the raid controller, because the server A (also a poweredge 740) isn't mine: the disk as been cloned to reproduce the same system in a different server.

I'm able to enter to the raid controller menu, but then I don't know what I have to do: the cloned SSD disk is seen in the hardware but, still, I'm not able to boot from this disk. I don't want to create a virtual disk because I don't want to erase the cloned disk.

thanks for any help,

g.

Hi,

did you verify that all firmware and components are the same?